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A review by jcbmathcat
Deadly Intent by Lynda La Plante
4.0
This is the fourth book in the Anna Travis series. Anna now has experience in the field as a member of various iterations of Murder Squads and has learned much from her former lover/boss, James Langton.
We are privy to the identity, of sorts, of the villain within the first few pages, but the police don't have the information that we, the readers, have. I thought this was an interesting way to start the ball rolling. I also thought it was interesting that the drug involved in this case is a drug I first learned about through my veterinarian. I wonder if it has become a problem drug on the streets, as was indicated in this book.
I do find myself becoming impatient with her, as she continually ignores warnings from Langton and other "higher ups" to work as part of the team and not go off on her own to follow leads. Some of her transgressions definitely qualify as grounds to demote her, yet she still manages to work her way out of trouble. She did insinuate to Langton that she had something on him (from the previous book) and this angered him. Anna seems a bit too egotistical and cocky in this book.
Some reviewers complain that the story drags. I feel that it's probably more accurate than a lot of what we see on television. Lab tests, DNA tests, and other forensic work take time, often weeks, before results are obtained. A lot of detective work is a type of drudgery, and I think La Plante does a great job of developing her stories so that readers understand this.
I also liked the fact that this story didn't have a particularly happy ending. Life is like that, and I think La Plante does a good job in keeping her stories real.
I have two more books to go and then hope we have access to the current (seventh) one in the series.
I also hope Anna matures some before she really finds herself in a corner.
We are privy to the identity, of sorts, of the villain within the first few pages, but the police don't have the information that we, the readers, have. I thought this was an interesting way to start the ball rolling. I also thought it was interesting that the drug involved in this case is a drug I first learned about through my veterinarian. I wonder if it has become a problem drug on the streets, as was indicated in this book.
I do find myself becoming impatient with her, as she continually ignores warnings from Langton and other "higher ups" to work as part of the team and not go off on her own to follow leads. Some of her transgressions definitely qualify as grounds to demote her, yet she still manages to work her way out of trouble. She did insinuate to Langton that she had something on him (from the previous book) and this angered him. Anna seems a bit too egotistical and cocky in this book.
Some reviewers complain that the story drags. I feel that it's probably more accurate than a lot of what we see on television. Lab tests, DNA tests, and other forensic work take time, often weeks, before results are obtained. A lot of detective work is a type of drudgery, and I think La Plante does a great job of developing her stories so that readers understand this.
I also liked the fact that this story didn't have a particularly happy ending. Life is like that, and I think La Plante does a good job in keeping her stories real.
I have two more books to go and then hope we have access to the current (seventh) one in the series.
I also hope Anna matures some before she really finds herself in a corner.